Phillipsburg herald. [volume] (Phillipsburg, Kan.) 1882-1905, 1887-09-03

s. popular Chinese game Is played
with a loaded cork bestuck with feath-
ers. The game Is to keep the cork in
the air. The first player throws up
the shuttlecock and before it again
reaches the earth he twists his foot and
gives the desceu ling 5ect kick with
his heel which sends it up into the air,
sometimes as high as tive .ty feet.
When it descends again he tries to
keep it within range OF his heel as long
as possible, but the play soon fails to
be exclusive; other boys standing anx-
iOusly about manage to get q kick at 1t,
sending it away from the first player,
who then Joins the outsiders in a general
scramble to gain possession. Some
times in the heat of the play, when the
crowd is punched together, the shuttle
cock is struck by the hand, but that Is
not allowable unless it is In danger Of
reaching the ground before the heel
can strike it. Expert players keep
their hands in their sleeves, hitting the
festhery object only with the heel, and
thus keeping it from the ground for
hours at a time.
Among Chinese toys there are odd
puzzles to be put together or strung
into certain shapes, gorgeous glass
marbles to roll about, balls with strings
attached, that they may not be lost,
and cOlOred blocks with which to build
wonderful houses, bridges, and towers;
diminutive junks to pull about on the
floor, and toy mirrors IN which to scan
small yellow features and narrow black
eyes. The abacus, or mechanical
counter, is placed in the hands of the
youth at a very early age, and it is
wonderful to Amer cans how quickly
mathematics are mastered IN this man
ner by little fellows hardly knee-high.
There does not seem to be as much
Of the make-belieye among the childish
players Of Chinatown as there IS among
white children. Although a joss APP
peals to Their ina ginatiOn, doll Is only
a doll. This may be accounted for by
the fact that about the time when they
would naturally begin to take most in
terest in wax features and sawdust
bodies their attention is called to dolls
of flesh and blood Hardly has the
female Monaghan fairly begun to steady
herself In her clumsy shoes when she
is made a saddle-horse for the month
Old tots of her own or some other fam
lily.
Among the Chinese, as among the
Christianized races, the small boy Is
the master of the house. His tempers
y
in with great forbearance. But he
generally finds the limit to the endur-
ance of his fond parents, Just as the
American small boy does, and then
there IS the same resort to corporal
punishment. Instead of the slipper,
the strap, or the little birch, however,
a nice little stick of bamboo, kept In a
handy place for the purpose named. is
clutched at the thickest end by long
nailed fingers.
When kite-fying Is to be considered,
the Chinese of any age are always
children. Old men take as keen de
Light in sailing paper dragons and
birds as boys Of 10. But this does not
detract from the pleasure Of the boys,
who unwind the lzite-string and watch
their cherished toy float away with an
interest that flags not with each sue
cessive aerial flight.
Chinese boys from to ID years of
age play an odd game with sticks of
wood about three feet long. a stick is
grasped near the middle and thrown
sideways; the object being to cross it
upon another stick lying upon the
ground.
When his son has attained the digni-
fed age of one month the Chinese
father, with a flourish Of trumpets and
a wonderful tO-do, orders the perform
ance of the ceremonial of shaving the
infants head. If the father happens
TO be a man of means he gives a great
banquet.
Top-spinning is q favorite amuse-
ment, and In this the Chinese are ex-
perts. The length Of time In which
they can keep the humming object in
motion is quite remarkable.